Simple Scrapbooks

The shock is wearing off...

A transition of this magnitude takes a lot of time to sink in. I'm getting more and more used to it, but most of the time it still doesn't feel real. My whole team is on a roller coaster of emotion, and it looks like this is going to be a looooong ride. (I just hope no one barfs! :-) And even today, a week after the announcement, we have many more questions than answers. We're all doing our best to figure out how to best serve all of our readers, we're still mourning our loss, and we're trying hard to focus on all the possibilities the future holds. I promised I'd keep you all updated, and all I can say is that I don't know much yet! But from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for all of your kind words and support

But I would like to hear a little more from you. What part of Simple Scrapbooks (whether it's a philosophy, a community, a personality, an approach, a style, or a specific column) would you most like to see continued online and/or within Creating Keepsakes magazine?

Share your thoughts with me, and I'll pick two winners who will receive one of these vintage "I'm a Simple Gal" t-shirts (specify whether you'd want the Small or the XL, the only two sizes I have). We had these printed up way back in 2004, and we just uncovered two more! They're perhaps the only two that still exist in the world. They're collector's items! I had one years ago that I wore to death...it was my lounge-around-the-house shirt and my exercise shirt. I ran at least six 5Ks sporting my "I'm a Simple Gal" t-shirt. My husband got very sick of the shirt. He'd say, "Oh no, please don't be a simple gal today." It always made me laugh, and I rarely listened, because I'm just a simple gal, through and through.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

Isn't that how the saying goes? Beginnings and endings. It's the circle of life. But it doesn't make it any easier. I'm saddened to announce that Simple Scrapbooks magazine will be ceasing publication after the May/June issue. And let me say that "saddened" is not a strong enough word, but I don't know what words would suffice. Sad for our readers. Sad for the staff. Sad for our founder. Sad for the loss of a fantastic, helpful, top-notch, high-quality, unique, and wonderful in all ways product...nothing short of "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" if I do say so myself. (p.s. I spelled that right on the first try)

I posted the "official announcement" just a few moments ago, so please read through that if you have any specific questions. I also thought I'd spend a few moments offering some context.

There simply isn't enough advertising to keep two magazines afloat. The economic situation has been difficult to say the least—and we've all been feeling it, no matter what area of the country we live in, or what industry we work in. I'm sure you can relate. Tough times. Tough measures.

Simple Scrapbooks will be folded back in to Creating Keepsakes magazine, from whence it sprang 8 years ago. Creating Keepsakes will make room for us, and several of us will have new roles on the Creating Keepsakes staff. My new job (as I understand it at this point) will be to infuse our best Simple content into the pages of Creating Keepsakes, to make sure that simple scrapbookers have a home in CK. You won't lose any of your favorite parts of CK; it will stay just as awesome as it is right now, but the umbrella will be expanded to include Simple readers as well. I have no details about how this will happen (a dedicated section vs. weaving it throughout the mag), because it's all too new. I just know that that's the goal. And I'm totally on board with that goal, because it means that the Simple philosophy is not dead. It will live on, just in new venues and in new ways.

The faces you know and love (Cathy Z., Wendy S., Stacy J. in particular) will not be disappearing. Other simple talent will be tapped as well to keep the Simple message going online, and in CK, and wherever else we can possibly find to spread the news. (like a sign on your front lawn, for example? :-)

Here are a few questions you may be asking:
How many issues are left? You can still look forward to our March/April issue (on sale in February) and our May/June issue (on sale in April). We also have an awesome special issue, Scrapbook Play with Photos, on sale in March. Look forward to them, and pick up as many as you can. They've just become collector's items.

What if I had a project in one of those issues, will I get it back? Absolutely! We'll follow all of our regular processes through these next two issues for returning layouts and projects. You'll get your layouts back according to our standard return timeline, and you'll also get paid for your layouts. The company itself isn't closing; just this one of the twelve or so total magazines that CKMedia publishes.

What about the announcement of your new Ambassadors and Simple Gals? Well, we heard the news just as we were about to announce our new crop of talent. Such unfortunate timing. Ugh. It just kills me. But I'll still share all their names in the next week or so, so you can congratulate them on being chosen in the first place, even though they didn't have the chance to serve their terms.

What about the Simple Blog? I'll keep this going through the transition at the very least. I'll still share what's happening at Simple over the next couple of months, and what the plan is for the future, so you'll know how and where you can find Simple inspiration and connect to other simple scrapbookers like you.

In closing, this little quote has been giving me some comfort.
Hopefully it does the same for you:

“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
—Winston Churchill

Thanks friends, for everything.
Angie

The Official Announcement

Loyal readers and contributors,

I am saddened to share that, due to difficult conditions in both the economy and the publishing market, the May/June 2009 issue of Simple Scrapbooks magazine (on sale April 14) will be its last.

Since its founding in 2002, Simple Scrapbooks has been simplifying the process of scrapbooking for tens of thousands of scrapbookers worldwide, providing solutions that keep them engaged in and passionate about sharing their stories and memories. The end of Simple Scrapbooks as a magazine is not the end of this message. It will continue as part of Creating Keepsakes magazine, where, starting with the July 2009 issue, we will integrate Simple concepts and personalities into our editorial mix, and continue providing ideas and inspiration to help beginning and experienced scrapbookers alike fit scrapbooking into their busy lives.

Implementing these editorial changes does not mean Creating Keepsakes readers will lose the content they know and love. It only means that the magazine will be further enriched by the Simple Scrapbooks approach—the best of both worlds in one publication! With 75% of readers subscribing to both publications, CK Media feels this change will also benefit subscribers who are feeling the current economic hardships.

All current Simple Scrapbooks subscriptions will be honored through the May/June 2009 issue, at which point any remaining issues will be fulfilled by Creating Keepsakes magazine, beginning with the July 2009 issue. If you are already a subscriber to Creating Keepsakes, your subscription will be extended accordingly. Any questions regarding submissions can be directed to [email protected] or by calling 866/334-8149.

Thank you for your loyalty and support. We have enjoyed our association with you, our loyal readers, and look forward to continuing it as part of the Creating Keepsakes family.

Sincerely,
Lin Sorenson
VP/Editorial Director
CK Media

Favorite Thing #827 About Working At Simple

Video chats with Cathy Z., who is still in her pjs by mid afternoon.

If I didn't have to be physically present in an office every day, I'd be wearing my pjs too.

On a Personal Note...

My friend Megan, who now works for CK but still sits in the middle of Simple-ville, approached me last week with a great idea that she and Wendy cooked up. We're all going to grow our hair out and donate it to Locks of Love, an organization that provides natural-looking wigs and hairpieces for underprivileged children and teenagers who suffer from long-term medical hair loss (from chemotherapy, alopecia, etc.). If you'd like to join us in our quest, we'd love to hear from you! Megan started a facebook group and has lots more details on her blog.

My hair is very fine, not thick and lustrous like Megan & Wendy's, so it will probably only make up less than 10 percent of a wig. But it's healthy and uncolored, so maybe that's in my favor. And I'm sure every little bit helps. Apparently, it takes 6-8 donations to create a single hairpiece!

Here are our first measurement photos. We'll be tracking our progress along the way, and we promise to post our new, short 'dos when we finally donate!

My hair on a rare "curly" day. I've got some growing to do!

Megan's well on her way!

Luckily for Wendy, her hair grows fast. :-)

The real motivation behind this came from something sad that Megan and I have in common: we both have a loved one who is battling breast cancer right now. My beautiful, brave, 29-year-old sister in law was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer in October The mother of two adorable toddlers, she had to undergo a double mastectomy just before Thanksgiving, and she started chemotherapy right before Christmas. She's got a year of treatments ahead of her.

Megan's mom was also diagnosed with breast cancer about a month after my sister-in-law. So Megan and I have been comparing notes and supporting each other through all of this. We both feel pretty helpless. And while this Locks of Love won't help our loved ones directly, it still makes us feel somewhat useful. And Wendy? Her mom is a breast cancer survivor, so she knows what we're going through and she gives us lots of hope.

I'm sure many of you can also relate to what our loved ones are going through. So if you'd like to join us, we'd love to have you!

Thanks and Good Luck!

We can't say enough how much we appreciate the editorial board members who served us faithfully in 2007 and 2008. Change is inevitable (and sad and happy all at once!), and we've altered our board structure to make room for a new crop of talent for 2009—and to make room for lots more contributions from readers. We're going from a dozen Editorial Board members and 9 Simple Gals to just 4 Simple Ambassadors and 12 Simple Gals. We've asked a few of our Board Members and Simple Gals to stay on in new and different roles (announcement Monday!), and we hope to maintain strong ties with ALL of them.

We've appreciated how they inspired us, shared their lives with us, and helped make our magazine the strong teaching tool that it is. They aren't going away, but they have "graduated," for lack of a better term. And we can't wait to see what's in store for all of them, whether they choose to remain affiliated with Simple Scrapbooks or choose to express their talents in new and exciting venues—or both!

Join me in expressing thanks to our 2007-2008 Editorial Board:
Beth Proudfoot
Candice Palmer
Cheryl Overton
Elisha Snow
Elizbeth Dillow
Karen Glenn
Kim Morgan
Lain Ehmann
Margaret Scarbrough
Marnie Flores
Rebecca Cooper
Tina Cockburn

And to our 2008 Simple Gals:
Amy Williams
Athena Patascil
Celeste Smith
Erin Sweeney
Linda Barber
Lisa Dickinson
Melanie Louette
Mi'Chelle Larsen
Sara Winnick

We love you forever, ladies!

Hip, Happy, Handmade (part deux)

This may look like an innocent book cover from the 1940s, but just you wait. Feminists of the world, brace yourselves!

The man is always right? Wait...what man? There's a man out there somewhere who's always right? Oh, right, I forgot. This is fiction. From the 1940s. We thought this book title was HILARIOUS. Another great find, Wendy!

See? Text-only pages look great too when bound into the journal. It doesn't even matter that there's no pictures, because these words paint a picture all on their own...just you wait.

Are you reading this? "A woman should never say what she thinks to a man unless it is flattering." Well, that's a rule I've broken a time or two. I certainly hope Claire put old Terry in his place by the end of the book.

How to have guests for dinner and enjoy them? What kind of cook book is this?

Pretty title page.

"A well-seasoned homemade potato salad is popular. Here is a recipe that produces a truly savory one."

When was it ever legal to cook mermaids?

Thanks QuicKutz for the library pocket dies!

We love our board members!

Hip, Happy, Handmade

In order to say "Thank You" to our outgoing 2008 editorial board, we wanted to send them a gift that was really from the heart. We didn't want to send them something that we obviously got for free (like extra product samples, etc.), or some impersonal item that we purchased and had shipped to them from afar. We wanted to send them something that we had made with our own hands. So Wendy and I decided to borrow a brilliant idea we'd seen at a local etsy.com boutique show and create customized journals for all 12 of them! We involved the whole team, and spent the better part of an afternoon and evening pulling apart old books, trimming down paper, picking the "perfect" book for each person, and binding them together with the Bind-it-All by Zutter.

Here are the results of our "labor of love," split into two separate posts, so check back tomorrow:
A pile of old books-become-journals.

The tool that made it all possible.

Ain't it sweet?

 This book was once the property of David Tolman School. Wendy found the book at a thrift store for $1.

We interspersed actual pages from each book with unlined white paper, trimmed to size.

Go Donna Parker!

The inside front cover of this book was adorable!

Ahhhh, the 1950s.

Tune back in tomorrow for two more fun examples!

Angie

Congrats Kristen!

Thanks for your kind words about Jan/Feb! You have no idea what a pick-me-up it was for all of us to read about how all our hard work (and all our contributors' hard work) is impacting people. WE feel lucky to be so inspired by the people we work with every day, and it's heartening to see that you appreciate it too. Thus, without further ado, our first blog prize winner of the New Year is...

Kristen (aka bowlerkristen)! (the 35th comment in the list)

Kristen, send your address to [email protected], with "Simple Blog winner" in the subject line.

Cheers!
Angie

A Little Teaser...

So we're gearing up to announce our NEW 2009 Simple Gals next week! We can't wait to share the good news; we've rounded up some amazing talent that we found through layout submissions and through our Simple Scrapbooks Group. Some are scrapbookers we've had our eye on for quite a while; some are fairly new to the fold but we felt we had to snatch them up quickly.

We're also thrilled to announce (also next week) a new kind of contributor: the Simple Ambassador! We needed a new name for some of our past contributors who are getting "promoted" (so to speak) to an entirely new sphere. It's all super top secret at the moment, but I just had to build some anticipation. We'll introduce you to everyone next week, explain what their duties are, and let you know just how we found them! So stay tuned...